Norco ice cream factory uses Bürkert valve control technology to double production and increase reliability.
Norco Co-operative Ltd was established in Byron Bay in 1895 and has more than 200 dairy farm members, supplying more than 200 million liters of milk to its two milk bottling plants and ice cream factories in Lismore, New South Wales. It has also launched a fledgling milk export business in China.
In 2018, the cooperative announced that it would double its ice cream production capacity by investing 10 million U.S. dollars through its farmer owners.
As part of the investment, a production line was built using brand new technology, including two new cleaning-in-place (CIP) systems, 14 tank upgrades, a flavor adding system and pasteurizer integration. Future planned work includes the installation of two spiral freezing tunnels and a fully automated robotic palletizing system.
The doubling of production will significantly increase the profitability of the ice cream business unit, which may lead to an increase in farm gate prices for farmers after the project is completed.
“These investments will take us to the next level, creating better technical efficiency and growing business volume,” former Norco CEO Brett Kelly said when announcing the investment.
“The cooperative’s business is very good, and Lismore’s ice cream is an important part of the business, so this will improve our business capabilities.”
The main steps of ice cream production—milk pasteurization, homogenization, mixing of ingredients and packaging, and cleaning-in-place (CIP) processes—all require extensive liquid flow control and therefore extensive value equipment. However, when implementing the sanitary valve of its choice, Norco encountered some technical difficulties with the valve control head. Therefore, it was decided to find a different type of control head to work with existing valves.
Norco has established an existing engineering and support relationship with Bürkert Fluid Control Systems (Bürkert) and has approached the company to provide suitable control heads.
Ryan Orbell, national department manager of Bürkert’s sanitary dressing department, visited Norco before the implementation of the project and demonstrated the 8681. Subsequently, a control head was installed and tried out locally, which proved that it is technically suitable to meet the needs of the factory.
“The Type 8681 control head provides Norco with many advantages,” Orbell said. “They provide higher visibility through super bright LED indication, more durable, with higher IP rating, and also provide a patented manual cover function without removing the top cover, which provides higher safety in humid environments Because it reduces the risk of operator error causing failure.”
Since the valves themselves are from different manufacturers, Bürkert also provides a universal adapter that enables the new control head to be combined with all commercially available sanitary valve types, such as butterfly valves, ball valves, and single-seat and double-seat valves. This means that a standard solution for the automation of all sanitary process installations can be achieved-eliminating the need for multiple brands and types of control heads.
“Previously, the control heads we used had reliability issues,” said Michael Mountain, Norco’s system improvement manager. “We encountered water ingress, control of loose tops and loss of feedback, as well as difficulties in cable termination-the terminals were tightened with screws, there was a gap under the terminals, and new contractors often stripped the threads.”
“For us, the main benefit of Bürkert control heads is moisture control, because the control top is internally pressurized-positive pressure to prevent any moisture from entering. Coupled with their excellent IP rating and easy-to-access lid removal, “He said.
“The slimmer design also allows for a more compact valve block and fewer dead spaces, and provides a better 360-degree view for the plant operator.
“Other advantages are the ability to achieve the external stroke of the valve without affecting the control of the top seal, as well as simple settings.”
The new Bürkert valve control head not only contributes to the safety of ice cream production by improving reliability and functionality, but the entire expansion project also contributes to the safety of the existing 240 jobs at Norco’s Lismore ice cream factory and ensures More workers are needed when the factory turns to 24/7 operation.
The 8681 control head provides various digital communication options via AS-interface, DeviceNet, IO-Link or büS/CANopen.
The Bürkert büS/CANopen interface can unify the communication between multiple valves and integrate the valves into the industrial Ethernet network by adding Bürkert’s ME43 gateway, if Norco decides to adopt the future Industry 4.0 integration.
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Post time: Nov-16-2021
